The tech industry is known for changing the way things are done in sectors but this time it is taking the idea of “bug fixing” to a whole new level. Alphabet Inc, the company that owns Google has released millions of lab-bred mosquitoes in California to fight the spread of diseases carried by mosquitoes. This project, called the Debug Project is run by Verily a part of Alphabet Inc that focuses on life sciences. It is one of the advanced and automated ways to deal with biological problems in the history of the United States. The goal of the Debug Project is to reduce the number of mosquitoes that carry diseases without using chemicals. This is not a science experiment gone wrong. A carefully thought out plan to control the population of disease-carrying mosquitoes.
There is a threat to public health: The Aedes aegypti mosquito. For a time the central valley and cities in California were not affected by this type of mosquito. However with the arrival of Aedes aegypti things changed. This mosquito is very aggressive. Can bite humans multiple times during the day. It is also very good at surviving in areas and can lay eggs in very small spaces.
Aedes aegypti is the carrier of diseases like Zika Virus, Dengue Fever and Chikungunya. As the weather changes and cities get hotter the population of these mosquitoes has grown rapidly. The usual ways to control them like using chemicals are not working well as they used to. This is why public health departments are looking to companies like Google for solutions.
The Debug Project uses a bacterium called Wolbachia to control the mosquito population. This bacterium is already found in insect species and is not harmful to humans. The scientists at Verily infect mosquitoes with Wolbachia and then release them into the wild. When these males mate with mosquitoes the eggs they produce do not hatch.
This method does not pose a risk to humans because only female mosquitoes bite and spread diseases. Over time the population of mosquitoes that carry diseases will decrease.
Googles contribution to this project is its ability to produce and release the mosquitoes on a scale. The company uses robots and algorithms to rear and sort the mosquitoes. The robots keep the larvae warm feed them and monitor their growth.
The important part of the process is sorting the males from the females. If female mosquitoes are released it could make the problem worse. Verily uses a system to sort the mosquitoes, which includes a mechanical sieve and a camera that uses artificial intelligence to check the anatomy of each mosquito.
The results of the project have been very positive. In Fresno County, California the population of mosquitoes that carry diseases was reduced by 93% to 95%. The Environmental Protection Agency has approved the project as safe for the environment.
Now Verily is working to make the Debug Project a public health service that can be used around the world. The company is partnering with countries, in South America and Singapore to offer its services and help control the spread of diseases carried by mosquitoes.
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